Harrow and cultivator



(No Model.)

B. L..MOLENDON.

HARROW 0R GULTIVATOR.

Patented July 28, 1896.

UNITED STATES PATENT" OFFICE.

BENJAMIN L. MOLENDON, OF GOODWATER, ALABAMA.

HARROW AN D CULTIVATO R.

SPECIFICATION forming part Of Letters Patent No. 564,833, dated July 28, 1896.

Application filed April 20, 1896. Serial No. 588,367. (No model.) I

To all whom; it may concern.-

Be it known that I, BENJAMIN L. McLEN- DON,a citizenof the United States, and a resident of Goodwat-er, in the county of Coosa and State of Alabama, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Harrows and Cultivators; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, which will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification.

My invention relates to harrows or cultivators having a plurality of shovels and standards, which may be adjusted with respect to each other, so as to bring them near together or farther apart, as may be found convenient or desirable.

The invention consists in the novel con struction and combination of parts herein after fully described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of a harrow or cultivator constructed in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 is a central longitudinal section of the same.

In the said drawings the reference-numeral 1 designates the beam provided with the handles 2 at the rear, which may be of any ordinary or suitable construction.

The numeral 3 designates the standards, consisting of two downwardly extending curved bars, provided at their lower ends with spacing-blocks 4:, secured thereto by bolts or rivets 5. These bars are provided with shovels 6, secured thereto by means of screw-bolts and nuts 7 and 8. .As will be seen in Fig. 1, there are three of these standards, the vertical one of which is secured to the beam 1 by means of transverse bolts 9, passing through the bars above and below the beam. The other standards are secured in like manner to side beams 10, to the ends of which are pivotally connected transverse bars 12, which in turn are pivoted at their centers to the plow-beam 1. To the front ends of said beams is secured a segment or approximately semicircular bar 13, provided on its upper side with a number of radial notches or grooves 14, with which engage the downwardly-turn ed ends 15 of a spring-metal segment plate or catch 16, located above the same and formed with 2. lug 17, by which it is secured to the beam 1 by a screw 18.

Secured to the rear lower transverse bars 12 in line with the standards is a series of curved spring brace-bars 19, the front ends of which are bent around bolts 20, secured to the standards. The standards are so connected with the beams as to have a slight pivotal play thereon, so that should the shovels strike a stone, stump, or other obstruction they will yield or give, so as to avoid injury, the spring-bars returning them to normal position when the obstructions have been passed.

By the above construction it will be seen that by disengaging the bent ends of the spring-catch16 from the radial grooves in the segment-bar secured to the side beams the latter may be turned backward or forward, as the case may be, and the space between the central and side standards and shovels be varied. The -spring-catch will then engage automatically with the said grooves and hold the shovels in their adjusted position. The shovels may also be made to travel one behind the other or all abreast, as desired.

I am aware that it is not new to construct a cultivator with a central tongue, a side beam at each side thereof pivotally connected therewith and with each other by cross-bars, so that said beams can be adjusted with re spect to the tongue to vary the distance be-v tween the shovels, and said side beams provided at their front ends with a segment-bar provided with means for securing it to the tongue and holding the side beams in posi: tion, and such is disclaimed by me.

Having thus fully described my invention what I claim is I 1 1. In a harrow or cultivator, thecombinal tion with the central beam, the standard and shovel connected therewith, and the movable side beams provided with standards or shov els, of the segment-bar connected with the side beams provided with radial grooves, and the spring-metal segment-plate having down to wardly-bent ends engaging with said grooves, and formed with a lug by which it is secured. to said central beam, substantially as de- I scribed. v

2. In a harrow 0r cultivator, the combination with the central beam, the movable side beams and the transverse bars pivoted to the ends of said side beams and pivoted at their centers to the central beam, the segment-plate having radial grooves and the spring-catch having downwardly-bent ends engaging with said grooves, of the standards, the bolts connecting the upper ends thereof with the beams, the shovels at the lower ends, the spring-metal brace-bars connected with the 

